Device for cleaning teeth.



1. A. DALY. DEVICE FOR CLEANING TEETH.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. H, 1916.

1,200,596. v Patented 0013.10, 1916.

Maxi-,3;

JOHN A. DALY, OF NEW ROCHELLE, NEW YORK.

DEVICE FOR CLEANING TEETH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 10, 1916.

Application flied January 11, 1916. Serial No. 71,391.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN A. DALY, a

citizen of the United States, residing at New Rochelle, in the county of Westchester and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Cleaning the Teeth, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates -to devices for cleaning the teeth, and more particularly to that class of such devices which are designed to be placed upon the tip of the finger and held thereon by means of flexible members encircling the hand, and it has for its primary object the provision of such a device in which the brush member is formed of suitable textile material adapted to form a finger-cot to fit the finger tip.

A. further object of this invention is the provision of means for holding the finger-cot in position to prevent the same from slipping off the finger.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a suitable supporting means for the cleaning member composed of such fabric as to prevent the finger supporting the cot from becoming moistened when placed within the mouth. I

A still further object of this invention is to provide a modified form more particularly adapted for use in hospitals for treating patients having infectious diseases whereby the device is provided with a removable cleaning member which may be thrown away after the device has been once used.

With the foregoing and other objects in view as will from time to time appear this invention consists in the particular combination and arrangements of the various parts of a device for cleaning the teeth as hereinafter described and more particularly set forth in the appended claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings forming a portion of this specification and in which the same reference numerals indicate the same parts wherever used, Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the device in position on the hand of the user; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through the device; Fig.

3 is a longitudinal section through the fingercot and tooth cleaning device, showing a modification of the invention, and Fig. 4 is a detail perspective of the modified form of the detachable tooth cleaning device.

5 designates a band of any suitable flexible fabric adapted to encircle the hand and,

provided with a hook or other suitable fastening member 6 adapted to engage an eye? carried by a strip of fabric'8 adapted to extend along the hand to the base of the forefinger where it is connected by means of suitable stitches 9 to a cylindrical finger cover 10, preferably formed of oiled silk or water proof-fabric or similar material and carrying upon the outer end thereof a fingercot tooth cleaning device 11 formed of any suitable textile material presenting the desired projections 12 for cleaning the teeth. The. member 11 is secured to the member 10 by means of a suitable layer of cement 13 nterposed therebetween, and the member 10 1s held in place upon the finger by means of the strap 8 and the band 5, thus preventlng any accidental displacement of the tooth cleaning device from the forefinger.

In the construction shown in Figs. 3 and 5 the layer of cement is dispensed with and the inner end of the portion 11 provided with an elastic annulus 14 adapted to constrict about the forefinger outside of the member 10, in

. order to hold the member 11 upon the forefinger.

In order to prevent liquid from the tooth cleaning member running down the forefinger the open end of the cylindrical member 10 is turned up to form an annular raised portion or bead 15 which encircles the finger.

With the device modified as shown in the last two figures the tooth cleaning member 11 may be removed from the finger and thrown away, which is particularly desirable when the device is used in hospitals, as when used in cleaning the teeth of persons suffering from infectious diseases, as the member 11 can be destroyed and a fresh and clean member suitably provided with the elastic annulus 14 placed upon the forefinger outside of the oiled silk cylindrical member. The waterproofed member 10 prevents any contact of the finger with the saliva from the mouth. thus avoiding all danger of infection and rendering the device sanitary.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of this invention that others can by applying current knowledge readily adapt it for various applications without omitting certain features that, from the standpoint of the prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention, and therefore such adaptations should and are intended. to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalency of the following claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a device of the character described, the combination of a flexible band adapted to encircle the hand, of a flexible member, a waterproof cylindrical member supported thereby and adapted to incase one of the fingers of the hand, releasable connection between the hand encircling band and said second hand, and a textile tooth cleaning member secured to the outer end of said waterproof cylinderical member.

2. In a device of the character described,

the combination with a waterproof member adapted to incase and snugly fit a finger, of

a textile tooth cleaning device thereon, and

whereby to permit removal of the tooth cleaning device.

3. In a device of the character described, the combination with a flexible band adapted to encircle the hand, of a second hand, means for releasably connecting said bands together, a Waterproof finger incasing member carried by said second hand, a textile tooth cleaning device removably carried by said waterproof member, an elastic annulus adapted to removably bind said tooth cleaning device about the finger outside of said waterproof member.

- In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

I JOHN A. DALYQ Witnesses:

FRED C. HARMs, Jr.

FRANCIS L. WRIGHT. 

